Mecklenburg County is set to receive $73 million over 18 years to address the opioid crisis. As part of those efforts, the county held a meeting Thursday to explain how the funds are being spent.
More than 100 people packed a room in west Charlotte for the third annual opioid settlement community meeting. In phase one, the county plans to invest about $11 million into the community. The money is being allocated to groups that include nonprofits, health clinics, and those who can provide employment and housing opportunities for people in recovery or treatment.
"One of the most biggest ways we can have an impact is on prevention," said Dena Diorio, Mecklenburg County manager. "And that’s one of the areas we are really focused a lot on because if we can get to people earlier on, we can prevent people from becoming addicted in the first place. So, I think that’s an area that I think is pretty critical.”
The county plans to invest $2.25 million in early intervention initiatives. In 2022, there were 228 illicit opioid overdose deaths in Mecklenburg County, an increase of 39 more people from the year before. To save lives, the county is also investing in programs that distribute Naloxone to help people at risk of overdose.
Additional programs could include a post-overdose response team, addiction treatment for incarcerated people, and reentry programs for people who’ve been incarcerated.
